The case confirms that in the ACT, the test for an unsafe and unsatisfactory verdict requires the appellate court to independently assess whether it was open to the jury to be satisfied beyond reasonable doubt of guilt. A sentence that is the highest imposed for a particular offence is not manifestly excessive if it falls within the range available to a reasonable sentencing judge, particularly where the maximum penalty has increased since comparable sentences were imposed. The ACT legislative framework does not clearly specify when the right to appeal against a verdict of guilty arises.
The full text is available to signed-in members, including the 24 later cases that cite this judgment.
7 of the 24 citing cases carry a classified treatment. How each court treated it is available to signed-in members.